Envelop-moistener.



0. L. ZITTLE a A. KONRAD. BNVELOP MOISTENER. APPLICATION FIL-ED JULY 1o,1909.

989,685. PatentedApzn 18, 1911.

ms Noims PETERS ca., wAsHlHwroN. v. c.

ORION L.

erna tinten.

ENVELOP-MOISTENER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 18, 1911.

Application led .Tuly 10, 1909. Serial No. 507,011.

To all 'whom it may cof/wem:

Be it known that we, ORION L. ZITTLE and ALBERT KONRAD, citizens of theUnited States, residing in the city and county of Denver and State ofColorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inEnvelop-Moisteners; and we do declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same,refer ence being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the lettersand iigures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

Our invention relates to improvement-s in envelop moisteners or devicesadapted for applying moisture to the gummed flap of the envelop prior tosealing.

Our object is to provide a device of this class which shall be welladapted to perform the moistening function, and which shall be ready foruse at all times.

The construct-ion generally expressed consists of a receptaclecontaining a rotatable cylinder, the latter being hollow and adapted tohold water, its wall having' a number of perforations to allow the waterto escape therefrom into an absorbent covering with which the outersurface of the cylinder is provided. The moistening cylinder is mountedto rotate in suitable bearings with which the ends of the receptacle areprovided. When the cylinder is mounted in the upper bearings it is notsupposed to dip into the water in the container or receptacle. if,however, the water becomes exhausted in the cylinder it may be droppeddownwardly, whereby its journals engage the lower set of bearings, thusallowing the cylinder to dip into the water within the receptacle.

Having briefly outlined our improved construction, we will proceed todescribe the same in detail, reference being made to the accompanyingdrawing, in which is illustrated an embodiment thereof.

In this drawing: Figure 1 is a top plan view of our improved moistener.Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 isan end elevation of the device. Fig. 4L is a cross section taken on theline le-4 of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 but showing themoistening cylinder in its lowered position.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the views.

Let the numeral 5 designate a receptacle adapted to contain water, whichis designated by the numeral 6. (See Figs. Q, 4 and 5.) As shown in thedrawing, this receptacle is widest at the bottom and tapers toward thetop on opposite sides, as shown at 7. In the opposite ends 8, of therecep tacle are formed vertical slots 9, vopen at the top to receive thejournals or trunnions 10, of the moistening cylinder 22, whereby thelatter is adapted to rotate freely within the receptacle.

The upper part of the cylinder protrudes or projects above the top ofthe receptacle, in order to allow the envelop to be brought intooperative engagement therewith for the purpose of moistening the gummedflap. As the envelop is applied to the cylinder and drawn over itsexposed or protruding surface, the cylinder rotates on its journals, andby virtue of this fact, the upper exposed portion of the absorbentcovering of the cylinder is kept constantly charged with moisture. Inany event the water will travel to the upper part of the absorbentcovering of the cylinder by capillary attraction so long as there is anywater within the cylinder or within the receptacle. Assuming that thecylinder is lowered to dip into the said water, the upper exposedsurface of the cylinder will be in condition for properly performing themoistening function. When the journals of the cylinder are in engagementwith the bottoms of the bearing slots 9, it is assumed that the cylinderis raised suffi ciently to maintain it above the level of the `water inthe receptacle, assuming that the The extremities of4 latter containswater. the receptacle 5 are also provided with branch slots 12, whoselower extremities extend downwardly considerably farther than the lowerextremities of the vertical bearing slots 9, so that when the journalsof the cylinder are in engagement with the lower extremities of theslots 12, the cylinder will occupy a lowered position within the.receptacle and will be in position to dip into the water G therein,assuming that the water is of suitable depth for the purpose, (see Fig.5.)

It will be readily understood that the moistening cylinder may be of anysuitable construction. As illustrated in the drawing, this cylinder iscomposed of a hollow body portion 18, preferably composed of sheet metalas aluminum which will not readily corrode or rust under ordinaryconditions. The extremities of this hollow cylindrical body areinteriorily threaded, as shown at 14, to receive circular flanges 15,projecting inwardly from the heads 16, of the cylinder, the latterforming closures for the ends of the water containing cylindrical bodymember. The heads 16, project considerably beyond the flanges 15, sothat the outer edges of the heads are approximately flush with the outersurface of the moistening surface of the cylinder, when the latter iscompleted for use in our improved device. These heads 16, are equippedwith the journals or trunnions 10, which engage the bearing slots formedin the ends of the receptacle 5, as heretofore explained.

Applied to the outer surface of the cylindrical body 13, is a layer ofsuitable absorbent material 17, which may be composed of any suitablesubstance as shrunk wool or felt, or both of these substances may beapplied to advantage. In any event, the absorbent substance 17 of thecylinder, should be reasonably thick, whereby it is adapted to hold aconsiderable quantity of liquid, in order that it may properly performthe moistening function. This layer 17 of absorbent material should bemanufactured in cylindrical form so that it may be slipped over eitherend of the cylindrical body before the heads of the latter are applied,and so that it will not be necessary to form a seam in the layer ofabsorbent material. After the heads 16 are applied, the absorbentcovering 17, will be locked in place upon the cylinder. Furthermore, itwill be understood that a tubular covering of this character will slipeasily over the body of the cylinder when the covering is in a drystate. After, however, it has become wet, it will shrink to such anextent as to form a tight lit, whereby any tendency for it to move uponthe cylindrical body is prevented or overcome. The body 13, of thecylinder, is provided with a number of perforations or openings 18, toallow water or other suitable liquid 19, with which the body of thecylinder is charged, to escape therefrom into the absorbent covering,whereby the latter is at all times in a suitable condition forperforming the moistening function.

In order to place the device in condition fon use, it is only necessaryto remove the moistening cylinder from its bearings in the receptacle,unscrew one of its heads, and pour a quantity of water thereinto. Thehollow cylindrical body may be filled with water, if desired, and inthis event, one charging of the cylinder will be sufficient to maintainits absorbent covering in a properly moistened condition for aconsiderable period, approximately a week. However, as an auxiliaryexpedient, the receptable 5, may contain a quantity of water 6, asheretofore explained, and its depth may be such that when the cylinderis supported in the upper bearing slots, its lower surface will beraised above the level of the water within the receptacle 5. Vhen,however, it is desired to allow the cylinder to dip into the waterwithin the said receptacle, the latter may be adjusted to cause itstrunnions 10, to rest in -the bottoms of the branch slots, 12, thusallowing the absorbent covering of the cylinder to occupy a positionsufliciently low within the receptacle to dip into the water containedtherein, as heretofore explained. In this event the absorbent coveringis brought directly into contact with the moistening liquid.

From the foregoing description, the use of our improved device will bereadily understood. Assuming that the cylinder is charged with water andthat the receptacle 5 also contains water, the cylinder will first be somounted that its trunnions 10, engage the end slots 9, of thereceptacle. In this event the water within the hollow body of thecylinder will pass out through the perforations 18, and saturate theabsorbent covering 17, in order to meisten an envelop for sealingpurposes, its gummed flap is drawn over the upper protruding surface ofthe absorbent covering 17, of the cylinder, preferably in such a manner,that the cylinder will rotate during the moistening operation, thuspreventing the cylinderV from removing any of the gum from the surfaceof the flap, as might be the case if the cylinder remained' stationary.It will be understood that envelop fiaps may be very readily moistenedby the use of our improved de-V vice, particularly after the user hashad a littleV experience therewith. Now in the event that the moistenedcovering should indicate signs of dryness, and it is desired tore-charge the cylinder immediately, the latter may be adjusted to allowits bearings to occupy the branch slots 12, whereby the lower portion ofthe absorbent covering of the cylinder, is allowed to dip into the waterreadily adhere to the surface to which they 2. An envelop moistener,comprising a re- 20 are to be applied.

Having thus described oui` invention, what we claim is:

l. An envelop moistener comprising a receptacle provided with sidestapering` inwardly from the vertical extension of the said sides to anopening in the top, the said receptacle having its extremities providedwith main slots and branch slots, the latter extending downwardly beyondthe main slots, an absorbent cylinder journaled Within ythe saidreceptacle and protruding through the opening in the top, the main slotsadapted to support the cylinder above the water level in the receptacleand the branch slots to support the cylinder within an immersedposition, subst-antially as described.

ceptacle having` an opening in the to and provided with main slots andbranch slots in its extremities, of an absorbent cylinder journaledwithin the receptacle and protruding through the opening` in the topthereof, the main slots being adapted to support the cylinder above thewater level, and the branch slots to support the cylinder in a submergedposition, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof We affix our signatures in presence of twoWitnesses.

ORION L. ZITTLE. ALBERT KONRAD.

litnesses Jnssin F. HOBART, W. R. FERRY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ive cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

